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January 2012

01/31/2012

U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur Tuesday called on Congress to do its part to investigate mortgage agency Freddie Mac following reports by National Public Radio and ProPublica that Freddie Mac "bet against" struggling homeowners.

Kaptur said she introduced legislation in 2009 to investigate decision making within the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac) and the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae).

According to the reports by NPR and ProPublica, Freddie Mac placed multibillion-dollar bets that would pay out only if homeowners stayed trapped in expensive mortgages with interest rates well above current rates. In 2008, both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were bailed out by U.S. taxpayers and placed in federal conservatorship under the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

“It is completely unacceptable for Freddie Mac to be positioning itself to benefit at the expense of American homeowners—and taxpayers were left with the bill,” Kaptur said. “It is well past time for the United States Congress to fully investigate the inner dealings between Freddie, Fannie, and Wall Street. FHFA clearly sat idly on the sidelines while American homeowners were used as financial pawns.”

01/30/2012

A White Official will focus on the threat of an Asian carp invasion of the Great Lakes in a forum set for noon, Feb. 6 at the Bowling Green State University Firelands campus in Huron.

U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) will host the forum on Asian carp with White House Council on Environmental Quality Asian Carp Director John Goss.

Asian carp is an invasive species that could pose a significant threat to the Great Lakes fisheries, which are estimated to generate up to $7 billion annually for our region. The Western Basin of Lake Erie is especially vulnerable to invasive species because it is shallow, warm, and home to spawning grounds.

Goss chairs of the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC), whose members will also be on hand to address public concerns about Asian carp.

Kaptur said she led the effort in the U.S. House of Representatives to authorize a permanent physical separation of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River, complete construction of the Asian Carp Dispersal Barrier in Chicago, and fund an accelerated study of physical separation.

The event will be at the Cedar Point Center, One University Drive, Huron.

01/27/2012

Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, will be the featured speaker at an event being held by Rep. Bob Latta.

The 2012 Lincoln-Reagan Day Dinner is scheduled for 7 p.m. March 3 at Bowling Green State University’s Lenhart Grand Ballroom in Bowen-Thompson Student Union, located off Thurstin Street in Bowling Green.

Tickets are $25 per person.

To purchase tickets, contact a county Republican Party chairperson.

Mr. Norquist founded ATR in 1985 at President Reagan’s request as a coalition of taxpayer groups, individuals and businesses opposed to higher taxes at the federal, state and local levels.

01/26/2012

U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich on Thursday announced he had the backing of Rep. Barney Frank (D., Massachusetts) in his 9th District primary contest.

Mr. Kucinich is up against U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Toledo in the March 6 Democratic primary for the redrawn 9th Congressional District.

In a letter to contributors, Mr. Kucinich wrote:

"I have worked with Congressman Frank for fifteen years to challenge out-of-control military spending and to create an American economy which is focused on taking care of things here at home. Congressman Frank and I have worked side by side to endeavor to bring an end to discrimination of all kinds, including those which are based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

"His support is an affirmation of our work in Congress for social and economic justice everywhere. I am very grateful to receive Congressman Frank's powerful words of encouragement," Mr. Kucinich wrote.

Steve Fought, campaign manager for Miss Kaptur, said that Mr. Frank may still be ticked off by Miss Kaptur's vote against his financial regulation bill in December, 2009. She said at the time that it didn't do anything about banks that are "too big to fail."

Mr. Fought said Miss Kaptur has "a lot more support inside the Democratic caucus" than does Mr. Kucinich.

Just as the Marcy Kaptur and Dennis Kucinich campaigns are battling for the votes of Hispanics in the 9th Congressional District, President Barack Obama has planned a Hispanic summit at Lorain County Community College two and a half weeks before the election.

The White House announced Thursday it will hold more than a dozen "Hispanic Community Action Summits."

One is set for Feb. 18 at Lorain County Community College, Elyria.

Kaptur collected the endorsement of Toledo Hispanics Wednesday. Kucinich has met with Toledo Hispanics to tout his support of the Dream Act, which Kaptur opposed.

The day that an Associated Press story ran in a number of Ohio newspapers about Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel missing all of the Ohio Board of Deposit meetings since being sworn in as treasurer, Mr. Mandel missed another one.

Mr. Mandel, who is running for U.S. Senate, was in Washington Thursday for an 8 a.m. fund-raising breakfast sponsored by U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R., Ohio) just two hours before a board of deposit meeting was scheduled i Columbus.

The Ohio Democratic Party has been bird-dogging Mr. Mandel and posted someone at the Board of Deposit meeting to see if Mr. Mandel would show up. (They had a spy at the fund-raiser in Washington, too.)

“Josh Mandel is not doing his job because of his overly ambitious personal agenda and this is irrefutable evidence of Mandel being completely and totally unfocused on the job he promised voters he would fulfill. One would be hard-pressed to find another Treasurer anywhere in the country more willfully neglecting their responsibilities as a public servant than Josh Mandel," ODP spokesman Justin Barasky said Thursday.

Seth Unger, Mr. Mandel's spokesman, said,

“Coming into office there was a lot to clean up from prior administrations in order to get the financial house in order. Due to this, Treasurer Mandel launched a top-bottom review that was able to replace manual check driving with electronic banking, reduce and eliminate waste, modernize banking practices, and safeguard state and local government investments even in a volatile economy. In short order, Treasurer Mandel was able to return a $400,000 surplus and reduce the budget by $1.2 million in General Revenue Fund operating expenses by hiring qualified financial professionals. Josh is the hardest working State Treasurer in America and has a record of accomplishments and high credit ratings to back it up. Through his time in the Marine Corps, Josh developed a strong appreciation for the importance of developing leaders by empowering them in leadership roles. He's always up to speed on the Board of Deposit, and has full confidence in his Chief Financial Officer to represent him on the board.”

Mr. Mandel’s fund-raiser was held at the Charlie Palmer Steakhouse, 101 Constitution Ave. Tickets to support his race against U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio) ranged from $500 for an individual to $2,000 for a “host.” Federal law allows an individual to contribute up to $2,500 per election, while political action committees can give up to $5,000.

The board of deposit decides where to invest the state's money. The official members of the board of deposit are the treasurer, attorney general, and state auditor, with the treasurer serving as chairman. The board’s last meeting was held Nov. 29 and all three sent representatives, as well as supporting staff. All three state officials sent representatives to each meeting from January through November. The board hasn’t posted minutes of its December meeting on the Web site yet.

Mr. Mandel’s predecessor, appointed Democrat Kevin Boyce attended at least four meetings of the board in 2010. Then-state Auditor Mary Taylor, a Republican, and Attorney General Richard Cordray, a Democrat, sent representatives to every meeting. The minutes of the April, 2010, meeting are missing from the board's Web site.

COLUMBUS, OHIO. – Justin Barasky, Press Secretary of the Ohio Democratic Party, released the following statement today regarding a new report showing Josh Mandel has missed every single State Board Of Deposit meeting during his first year in office:

“Today's report is a stunning indictment of Josh Mandel's overly ambitious personal agenda and irrefutable evidence of someone completely and totally unfocused on the job he promised voters he would fulfill. One would be hard-pressed to find another Treasurer anywhere in the country less focused on the job they’ve promised to do and more willfully neglecting their responsibilities as a public servant than Josh Mandel.

"Our absentee Treasurer owes Ohioans an explanation and an apology for proudly displaying an embarrassing lack of commitment to both his office and the voters who put him there."

John Marshall, a Republican write-in candidate for Lucas County Commissioner, passed along his reaction U.S. Rep. Francisco Canseco's reaction to the President's State of the Union Address:

Sylvania, OH – I fully agree with Congressman Francisco "Quico" Canseco's assessment of the President Obama’s 3rd State of the Union speech. I personally felt that it held no guidance or directions to lead our country. Same old empty campaign speech we've heard before.

We are all on the same boat, Polish, German, Latinos, Jews, etc., all suffer the same dismal outlook for our country under another Obama Administration. The President has proven over and over again that he is a divider not a healer, a campaigner, not a President. He's more like the cruise ship that hit the rocks off the coast of Italy; all the while the ships captain was not doing his job to guide the ship. Even when the ship was sinking, the captain kept saying, "It's alright, we're not sinking." Sound familiar?

All of our peoples no matter what we call or label ourselves, must come together as a team and bring a new leader to Washington D.C. A leader that will help clear the way of massive numbers of job killing regulations and government waste and fraud so that we ALL have our chance at the American Dream.

Thank you to Congressman Canseco for his brilliant and accurate response.

May God bless you all, John Marshall, Candidate for Lucas County Commissioner, Republican Party.

It was definitely a pro-Barack Obama crowd that convened at the southwest Toledo home of Barbara and Eddie Rome Tuesday night to hear the President’s fourth State of the Union Address.

And at the end of the night they were all still onboard.

As the President moved through his themes of green energy, crackdowns on greedy banks, “smart regulations,” and making those who can afford it pay their share of taxes, as well as his more unifying subjects of patriotism and industrial productivity, the reaction of the Obama group in the Rome home were positive.

Just about everything the President said drew approving murmurs or cheers of “tell ‘em,” and “that’s right!”

“He did not leave any stone unturned,” said Ann Smith, 76, of Toledo, a homemaker. “I think he was trying to accomplish unity. I think he’s a sincere guy. That’s why I voted for him. He has a real heart for the people.”

Mrs. Smith was one of about a dozen people who attended the local “Watch Party,” one of about 150 organized by the Obama re-election campaign in Ohio alone, and a claimed 2,500 nationwide.

Some of the people who came to the Romes’ house knew each other before Tuesday night. They were either invited by the local Democratic Party or the Obama re-election campaign, or just found it by checking the Obama re-election Web site to find some way to support Mr. Obama’s re-election bid.

Unlike the Obama speech, the Republican rebuttal of Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels was met mostly with respectful silence in the Romes’ house. Until the end. "Sit down!" was called out as Mr. Daniels neared the end of his rebuttal.

Mrs. Rome said she agreed to host the party after she attended a meeting of Obama supporters in June.

“I like his issues, I like what he stands for,” said Mrs. Rome, 66, a local federal government employee. She said she feels worried about her economic status and isn’t so sure she’s even a member of the middle-class anymore because her home has declined so far in value that she can’t refinance it.

Parked in the deep sofa in the living room, Mr. Rome, 69, a retired factory technician, cheered frequently when the President made his various assertions.

Others, including Bob and Carol Falke, Phyllis Wallace, Beatrice Gracie, and Vernell Readus, all of Toledo, sat in chairs or at the dining room table.

Ms. Brown, 67, a retired city utilities foreman, clapped and said ”yes” when the President said he would “fight obstruction by action.”

And she guessed it was Mitt Romney, a Republican candidate for president, to whom Mr. Obama was referring when he noted, “some said we should let [the auto industry] die.” Mr. Romney wrote a newspaper column in 2008 opposing the General Motors and Chrysler bailouts headlined, “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt.”

Ms. Lewis, 48, of Toledo, agreed with the President’s commitment to go after Chinese manufacturers who ‘‘dump’’ products on America.

“We’re getting a lot of products that are substandard, and I don’t think people are aware of that,” Ms. Lewis said.

“It drives down the profits of businesses in this country. She’s hoping to open a discount store, “but not products from China,” she said.

Cheers went up when the screen showed U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) clapping at the reference about leveling the international trade playing field, a favorite Kaptur topic.

There was also local pride when Mr. Obama mentioned Toledo as one of the cities pumping out new cars.

On the subject of energy, the President chided the oil industry and vowed a commitment to green-energy solutions.

“I’m in, I’m in,” said Bob Falke, when the President said the country has subsidized the oil industry for a century. “Is that divisive? No it’s not,” said Mr. Falke, responding to claims he has heard from Republicans that the President is divisive.

Ms. Wallace, 68, liked the President’s emphasis on education. “That’s right,” she said repeatedly when Mr. Obama said “stop teaching to the test,” and went on to propose that students be prohibited from dropping out until they’re age 18.